updated 10:35 am EDT, Wed October 12, 2011

Look echoed in iCloud version of Find My iPhone

Apple has released Find My Friends, the iOS tracking app announced at last week's iPhone event. Similar in concept to Google Latitude, Find My Friends lets users follow people who have accepted requests in their own copies of the app. Once they give the thumbs up, friends will appear both on a list of contacts and on a Google map.

As needed users can toggle parental and privacy controls. The most important of these may be temporary sharing, which will automatically stop tracking by others after a certain length of time. Find My Friends is a free universal app for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, but requires both iOS 5 and an iCloud account. iOS 5 is only due to launch later today.

Apple has also launched an iOS version of AirPort Utility. The app helps manage any AirPort-based Wi-Fi router with 802.11n, which includes the Time Capsule, AirPort Extreme, and AirPort Express. Users can change network and router settings, see a visual layout of a network, and obtain data on connected devices. The software even allows restarting or restoring a router, or downloading new firmware when Apple makes it available.

Like Find My Friends, AirPort Utility is a universal app that demands iOS 5. The title appears to be an extension of Apple's "PC Free" concept, which allows iOS devices to function without syncing to iTunes. Only Apple routers are supported however, meaning that most people will still need a PC or Mac to configure Wi-Fi.